The Unwilling Queen

Come back to me

Roedin blinked his eyes open, observing the legs of the cot and the feet that shuffled around it. He was lying facedown on the ground, the crumpled grass coarse on his cheek. Voices murmured in the background. Water dripped. Crickets and frogs and other creatures of the night called from outside the tent, overlain by the sounds of crackling campfires and hushed voices. It was dark, though the tent was filled with lumenstones and lanterns.

Pushing himself off the ground Roedin looked around at the tent's occupants. He had no idea how long he had been unconscious, no memory of hitting the floor. But Avery was still in the cot beside him, and her chest rose and fell with each breath. The blackness had been crudely wiped from her face but streaks remained by the corners of her mouth and eyes. The sheets were still stained and wet and her auburn hair was matted to her sweaty face. Auburn. The blackness had not only been pulled out of her body but in her attempt to clear it all Petra had pulled the dye right out of Avery's hair. She looked gaunt and sickly. But she also looked alive.

The young female doctor--Roedin searched for her name--knelt by him and held out a cup. "Here. Drink this."

Juniper. The Skye's daughter. She looked exhausted. Her hair was dishevelled and pulled out in all directions. Her hands were red and raw from being scrubbed clean and her eyes drooped in fatigue. But she held her chin high and handed him the cup with a steady hand. "Your surgeon said I should give it to you when you wake." She gestured to the cup again.

Roedin accepted the drink and swallowed it down. The bitter taste woke up his senses and liquid settled his stomach. "Thank you," he said as he returned the cup.

She answered with a nervous smile, too exhausted to be afraid of him. "Thank you. I don't know what you did, but you gave her a chance. Gave us a chance." Her eyes wandered over to the cot and the young woman lying there. Roedin touched Avery's burning palm, afraid if he moved to quickly she would simply shatter into pieces.

"Roe," Petra whispered beside him. The surgeon was laid out on another cot, exhausted from draining her magic to save his mate's life. On the other side of the tent Ming-na sat up on her own cot, wrapped in a blanket even though the night was warm. She sipped some tea and Skye took her pulse.

"Roedin, come here."

Reluctantly Roedin relinquished Avery's hand and moved to a stool set up at the edge of Petra's cot. "Is she --"

"Alive. You saved her. You called her back." She cupped Roedin's cheek. "We had to stop and let her body recover, regain some strength.

Roedin nodded even though he didn't really understand the words. "But you could continue to treat her, keep it at bay?"

Petra gave him a sad smile and patted his hand like a youngling in need of reassurance. "We can find a way." Roedin closed his eyes, torn between relief and concern. He overheard Ming-na telling the human doctor 'once step at a time'. They spoke of remedies and treatments, comparing notes on their experiences. Juniper continued to tidy up the items on the table and rinse instruments until her father called her off, ordering her to bed. The nurse named Robin came in with fresh water and picked up where she left off.

Shouts outside. It was Colonel Aspen and a woman. Roedin could hear Hazel there but she didn't interject much. Roedin had noticed that while she was technically Picea's superior she let her soldiers do as they would, only redirecting when necessary. It was an interesting deception tactic that he was sure Hayden could appreciate. Roedin tried to block out the argument, too exhausted to care about the petty squabbles between humans.

"How could you let this happen?" the woman snapped.

"Me?! General Iris, it was your son who dragged her into camp and said she had killed the princess!" Aspen replied.